By RON BALICKI
Senior WriterPINEHURST, N.C. – After completing his opening-round match Wednesday in the 108th North & South Amateur Championship at Pinehurst No. 2, Paul Simson made his way to the St. Andrews Room for lunch at the contestants’ buffet.
That became the most difficult task of the day for the 57-year-old from nearby Raleigh, N.C. He was the oldest player in the starting field of 132, with more than 90 percent being college-age participants.
“They weren’t going to let me go through at first,” said Simson, the 2006 British Senior Amateur champion. “The gal at the table called over two or three officials before they finally gave me the OK. I guess they figured I was trying to sneak a free lunch, that I was too old to be one of the players.”
Old Dominion’s Eric Onesi got an up-close-and-personal look at just what kind of a player Simson is. Simson won the first three holes in their match, was 5 up at the turn, and cruised to a 7-and-6 victory, the most lopsided decision of the 32 first-round matches.
“I played very solid, very smart,” said Simson, who recently qualified for his fifth U.S. Senior Open. “I kept the ball in play, which you have to do out here, and missed only two greens. As what often happens in match play, my opponent kind of beat himself. He dug himself in a few holes, started pressuring and got further and further behind.”
Simson, the 2006 British Senior Amateur champion, was probably the shortest hitter on this 7,346-yard course this day.
“I don’t worry about these young guys hitting it by me as long as I keep it in the fairway,” he said. “The thing about it is they have the tees so long, I can’t hit it far enough to get into trouble so actually it takes some of the pressure off me.
Simson will now face Georgia Tech All-American Cameron Tringale of San Juan Capistrano, Calif. Tringale won, 1 up, over Robert Riesen of Pinehurst and the University of North Carolina.
The next oldest player in the match play field was 49-year-old Kelly Miller of Southern Pines, N.C., the CEO at Pine Needles Resort. But he was defeated, 1 up, by Bill Rankin of Ann Arbor, Mich., and the University of Michigan.
Among other first-round matches:
• Kyle Stanley of Gig Harbor, Wash., No. 3 in the
Golfweek/Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings, won his first three holes, was 4 up after 11, and rolled to a 4-and-2 win over Wesley Bryan of Chapin, S.C., who will be a freshman at South Carolina this fall.
• Fifth-ranked Jamie Lovemark was 2 up after three holes, birdied Nos. 8, 9, 10 and 11 to go 6 up and cruised past James Gill of St. Andrews, Fla., 7 and 5.
“This course suits me well,” said Lovemark, playing in his first North & South Amateur. “I felt very comfortable out here. Nothing went bad for me today. The greens were a little soft, so it was perfect.”
Lovemark was the event’s qualifying medalist with a 5-under 136 total on the No. 2 and No. 4 courses at this famed resort in the North Carolina Sandhills. He tied with Tringale, then earned medalist honors with a par on the first playoff hole – No. 14 at course No. 2.
• Defending champion Phillip Mollica of Anderson, S.C., was the top seed in the match-play bracket.
His stay this year was much shorter than last. Mollica, a member of the Clemson golf team, bogeyed the 21st hole and lost to No. 64 seed Adam Long of Wentzville, Mo., and Duke.
• In a battle among USC teammates, Rory Hie, No. 8 in the SPWAR and a first-team All-American as a sophomore last season, edged past No. 54 Tom Glissmeyer, 2 up. Glissmeyer, from Colorado Springs, Colo., was 2 up after three holes, but the match was all square after 7. Hie won Nos. 8 and 10, but Glissmeyer won 11 and 13. Hie closed things out by winning Nos. 16 and 18 with birdies.
“It was a tough match and tough to play because we are teammates,” said Hie, who last week won the Dogwood Invitational. “I knew I was going to have to play well today to beat him and I did. I was 2 under. Right now it’s just a big relief.”
• The second and third rounds of match play are scheduled for Thursday with the quarterfinals set for Friday, the semifinals Saturday, and the 36-hole championship final for Sunday.
Results from the first-round of match play at the North & South Amateur, played July 2 at Pinehurst (N.C.) Resort’s par-71 7,346-yard No. 2 Course:
| Adam Long def. Phillip Mollica |
20 holes |
| Steve Ziegler def. Connor McHenry |
3 and 2 |
| Scott Langley def. Scott Langley |
4 and 3 |
| George Bryan def. George Bryan |
2 up |
| Bud Cauley def. Henry Zaytoun III |
5 and 4 |
| Morgan Hoffmann def. Scott Harvey |
4 and 3 |
| David McAndrew def. Jonathan Bowden |
3 and 2 |
| Dustin Groves def. Kyle Coconis |
2 up |
| Pan Cheng-Tsung def. Drew Younts |
5 and 4 |
| Lucas Lee def. Kenny Kim |
2 and 1 |
| Alex Martin def. A.J. Oleksak |
5 and 4 |
| Matt Savage def. Hunter Howell |
2 and 1 |
| Patrick Rada def. James Sacheck |
2 and 1 |
| Jacob Burger def. David May |
20 holes |
| Bo DeHuff def. Kyle Ellis |
1 up |
| Andrew Giuliani def. Blake Trimble |
4 and 2 |
| Jamie Lovemark def. James Gill |
7 and 5 |
| Carter Newman def. Wes Roach |
4 and 3 |
| Zack Byrd def. Gregor Main |
2 and 1 |
| Jimmy Lytle def. Zack Siefert |
4 and 3 |
| Travis Woolf def. David Byrne |
5 and 4 |
| Seth Brandon def. Cody Paladino |
1 up |
| Bill Rankin def. Kelly Miller |
1 up |
| Ferdinand Aunzo def. Dave Bunker |
2 and 1 |
| Cameron Tringale def. Robert Reisen |
1 up |
| Eric Onesi def. Paul Simson |
7 and 6 |
| Rory Hie def. Tom Glissmeyer |
2 up |
| Jonathan Hodge def. Kevin O’Connell |
19 Holes |
| Kelly Kraft def. Chad Day |
6 and 4 |
| Nathan Stamey def. Kevin Foley |
2 and 1 |
| Kyle Stanley def. Wesley Bryan |
4 and 2 |
| Cliff Benson def. Clark Klaasen |
2 and 1 |
•
Click here for stroke-play qualifying results.
Posted: 7/2/2008
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